A couple of days had passed since the Ghostbusters had been found. All four were still unconscious but were out of immediate danger for the most part. Peter, Ray and Winston were moved out of the ICU while Egon would being staying there for at least another day or two. Peck and Hardemyer had been transported back to NYC and were expected to stand trial in the next couple of weeks. The case had been given to the DA's office in NYC for them to look over and move forward with.
Janine, Jenny, Dana and Tiyah had all gone back to the city for a day to check up on children, file some paperwork, and gather some clothes and toiletries for their stay in Hunter. Mel herself had gone back to New Mexico to do some chores and take care of her cat. Kylie was updated on her bosses' conditions and promised to make it up to Hunter in the next couple of days. While in the city, Janine and Jenny helped out the Chicago Ghostbusters with a few busts. Jonathan and Adam had expressed interest in helping out, so Jenny, Kylie, and Bryan trained them to use the proton packs, traps, PKE meters, ecto goggles and other equipment. To their surprise, the two young engineers caught on quickly and could even repair some parts of the packs despite never being around or using them.
Relieved that there were two extra sets of hands to help with busts, the ladies could focus on the still injured and unconscious Ghostbusters. After arriving back in Hunter and checking in to a hotel, the ladies headed back to hospital. They were relieved to find out that the guys hadn't gotten worse over the past couple of days and seemed to be on track for a full recovery. An hour later, Janine, Dana, Tiyah and Jenny were once again sitting with the men they had fallen in love with. Dana was sitting in a chair next to Peter's bed, looking over a book. The unconscious psychologist was looking a bit better than he was several days ago. Most of the bruises had started to fade and his complexion wasn't as pale as it had been. The bandage on his forehead had been taken off, leaving a stitched laceration exposed on his forehead. The lacerations and burn marks were healing without issue and any infection had been warded off. Peter's lungs were now clear of any fluid and was now on a nasal canula.
Dana took hold of Peter's hand and squeezed it, hoping maybe she would get a response. She then felt a light squeeze around her hand which caught her attention. She then heard a voice softly call her name. Dana turned her head and saw Peter's green eyes slowly open. He looked around him for a couple of seconds before landing on the musician.
"...Dana...?" the psychologist whispered.
"Peter, thank God you're awake." Dana replied with tears in her eyes. She leaned down and gently kissed the Ghostbuster on the lips.
"Where...where I am?" Peter asked.
"You're in the hospital. You've been unconscious for two days." Dana replied, "How are you feeling?"
"Sore..." Peter tiredly replied. A sudden thought hit him. "Guys! Where are the guys?"
"They're fine." Dana reassured, "They're still unconscious, but they're alive."
"Thank God." Peter sighed with relief.
"I was so worried I'd never see you again." Dana said as she teared up again.
"Me too..." Peter replied as he closed his eyes, "It was horrible Dana. We were...out there...alone. We were...beaten and...tortured. We wandered in the woods...injured and alone. And then getting...hit by that car..." Tears began falling from Peter's eyes, "I thought we were gonna die..."
Dana wrapped her arms around the psychologist and held him tightly while trying to comfort him.
"Hey, it's ok." Dana reassured, "You're still here, the guys are still here, and I'm here for you."
Peter briefly broke their hug and looked into Dana's equally teary eyes.
"I love you much Dana..."
"I love you too Peter..." Dana replied she once again pressed her lips against the psychologist's.
In another hospital room, Jenny was sitting next to a still unconscious Ray. The engineer seemed to be healing well as he looked more alive than he was a couple of days ago. Some of his bruises had faded and some of the lacerations were close to being completely healed. Any infections had been warded off, his lungs were healing and clear of any fluid and Ray was now on a nasal canula like Peter to help him breathe.
Jenny sat next to the bed motionless in her chair. She had been lost in thought for a while, thinking about everything that had happened to her in the past few years. From joining the Ghost Smashers, joining the Ghostbusters, dating Ray, becoming PCOC liaison, getting torn apart by an angry banshee, getting trapped in the containment unit, getting freed from the containment unit and becoming human again, and so many other things. She knew that one of the consequences of dating a Ghostbuster was having a not-so-normal life, but she hadn't expected this and everything else that had happened to her. But the abnormality was not going to stop her from having a life with Ray.
"...Jenny...?" a weak voice called out.
Jenny snapped out of her thoughts and turned to see Ray's heterochromatic, albeit tired eyes looking back at her.
"Hello my dear." Jenny said as she took his hand and brushed back a few locks of his hair, "How are you feeling?"
"Sore, tired, physically and mentally...but also relieved." Ray replied, "Are the guys...ok?"
"Yes, they're fine. They're unconscious, but they're alive." Jenny replied reassuringly.
"Thank God..." Ray said before closing his eyes as memories resurfaced, "I thought we were going to die Jenny...I thought we were going to...die on that road alone with them..." A tear fell down Ray's face, "I...I...I thought I was never gonna see you again..."
Ray threw his good arm around Jenny and cried into her shoulder. Jenny wrapped her arms around the distressed engineer and tried to comfort him.
"Shh...it's ok." Jenny said softly, "You're still here, the guys are still here, and I'm here. And I'm not going anywhere without you."
Ray was about to say something but felt a pain in his head requiring him to lay back on the pillow.
"Easy, you still have a concussion." the blonde liaison warned.
"Feels like there's a thousand jackhammers in my head..." said the engineer.
"I'll go find one of the doctors." Jenny said before leaving the room. A few minutes later, she returned with Dr. Kim, who gave the engineer a quick look over. After checking his pupils and his memory to make sure his concussion wasn't severe, she concluded that it wasn't and gave Ray pain medicine through an IV. A few minutes later, Ray could feel the pain in his head lessen. But it made him even more tired than he already was as he struggled to keep his eyes open.
"How about you go back to sleep?" Jenny suggested as she noticed her boyfriend struggling to stay awake, "I'll still be here when you wake up."
"Thanks Jen." Ray replied with a tired smile, "I love you so much."
"I love you too my sweet Ray." Jenny replied as she kissed the engineer on the forehead. Ray then proceeded to close his eyes and once again fell into a deep slumber.
A day passed since Peter and Ray regained consciousness, and so far, the two Ghostbusters seemed to be on the mend. Detectives Ross and Scott had come by to get their accounts of what happened. It wasn't easy as the two were still somewhat out of it and had head injuries, but they were able to recount their imprisonment and escape to the detectives. After the detectives left, Mel came by to check up on them. Kylie had finally managed to get away from the city and come up to Hunter to see her bosses.
Meanwhile, Winston and Egon, having been a bit more seriously injured than their colleagues, were still unconscious. However, both were still on the mend and Egon had been moved out of the ICU. In Winston's room, Tiyah sat next to her unconscious fiancé. The Marine looked a bit better than he did three days ago. The bruise and swelling on the left side of his face had gone down, the lacerations were beginning to heal and weren't showing signs of infection, and his internal injuries were healing with no complications. The infection in his lungs had been almost cleared out and a few hours earlier, Winston had been taken off the ventilator and was now wearing an oxygen mask.
Tiyah sat next to the Marine, holding his hand. She thought about everything that had transpired in the past five years. She had first met Winston and the Ghostbusters at the school she taught at after several ghosts had shown up at the Valentine's Day dance. Overtime, she and the Marine had fallen in love and even got married before Tiamat stole her memories and altered time so that nobody, but Winston, remembered that they had gotten married. All because the Sumerian goddess of chaos hadn't deemed his sacrifice 'good enough'.
However, after saving her from a ghost, Tiyah and Winston fell in love all over again, and she eventually regained the memories Tiamat had taken away. She remembered when he, Ray, Egon and Peter were abducted by the Collectors and were missing for about three months. Most people probably wouldn't want a partner with such a dangerous job as Winston's, but Tiyah wasn't one of those people. Although she worried tremendously for her fiancé, she was fiercely loyal and loved him deeply.
"...Tiyah...? Is that...you...?"
A weak and tired voice brought the teacher out of her thoughts and back into reality. She looked over at Winston and saw his tired dark eyes partially open and looking at her.
"Yes, it's me, my love." Tiyah said, "How are you feeling?"
"Tired...and incredibly sore..." Winston replied, "Feels like...I got hit...with a brick on my...face."
"You suffered blunt force trauma on the left side of your face." Tiyah replied, "Almost broke your jaw."
"That explains it...I've felt less sore...in boot camp than...I do now..." the Marine quipped. Tiyah smiled at her fiancé's attempt at humor.
"Are Pete, Ray, and Egon...ok?" Winston asked tentatively.
"Yes, they're all ok." Tiyah replied reassuringly, "Peter and Ray regained consciousness yesterday, but Egon's still unconscious."
"How long was I out?"
"About three days now."
Winston sighed and closed his eyes as memories came back to him. "It was...hell Tiyah. Absolute hell. We were...trapped in the middle of...nowhere. They were...gonna kill us...I thought I would never see you or my dad ever again..."
The soul of the Ghostbusters clenched his fist, and several tears ran down his face.
"It's ok, my love." Tiyah said soothingly and reassuringly, "You're still here and you're safe. And those bastards will never hurt you or the guys ever again."
"I'm sorry this...keeps happening..." the Marine said, "If you're...not comfortable...with this, you can..."
Tiyah put her finger up against the oxygen mask covering his mouth and nose as if to silence him.
"There's no need to apologize for what happened. I knew the risks that came with dating a Ghostbuster." Tiyah replied reassuringly. "And even though your job makes me worry about you a lot, I love you too much to leave you. So, don't get those ideas in your head Winston Zeddemore."
A small smile appeared on the Ghostbuster's face. "Thanks baby. I love you...so much."
"I love you too Winston." Tiyah replied as she lifted the oxygen mask and kissed him on the lips.
Another day had passed, and Peter, Ray and Winston were all healing with no problems. Detective Ross and Mel, who were staying in Hunter for the time being, had come by to get Winston's account of the kidnapping and escape. Meanwhile, Dana had gone back to the city for a couple of days to give her parents a break for looking after Oscar. Peter and Ray were moved into a shared room so they could have some more company, and Winston would likely be joining them in the next day or so.
However, Egon, having been more injured than his colleagues, was still unconscious, but had not experienced any setbacks. And Janine had been by his bedside for almost every moment. The physicist seemed to be healing well as his complexion was now a more healthier looking shade. The lacerations marring his arms, legs, abdomen, and chest were healing and the infections in his lungs and stab wounds on his abdomen were gone. The internal injuries in his abdominal cavity were healing well and the bruises on his arms, legs, chest and abdomen were fading. The swelling beneath his right was going done and the bruise was fading. His ribs and ankle were healing and several hours earlier, Egon had started breathing on his own and was taken off the ventilator. Like Winston, he was now on an oxygen mask.
Janine sat next to her beloved physicist and rubbed his hand. She had been thinking a lot over the past four days, especially everything that's happened ever since being hired for the Ghostbusters. She remembered seeing & meeting Egon for the first time and immediately falling for him. And despite having several relationships since, she never lost her love for the dark-haired physicist. Unfortunately, there were too many instances to count that she almost lost him from the battle with Gozer, the guys being abducted by the Collectors, Egon getting killed by an immortal Icelandic warlock, him getting shot during a robbery attempt at the firehall, almost getting killed in a car accident, and him being abducted by Peck the first time.
But after an incident a few months ago, Egon finally opened his heart and confessed his feelings for the fiery receptionist. Hearing him say 'I love you' for the first time made Janine realize that the wait had been worth it. But of course, thanks to Walter Peck and Jack Hardemyer, their still budding romance had been in danger of being cut short simply because they couldn't let go of their bitter feelings towards the guys.
Janine sighed and rubbed her tired eyes. She then felt a light squeeze around her hand. She looked up wondering if it was Egon or her imagination.
"Egon? You awake?" Janine asked impatiently.
"...Janine? ...Is that you..." Egon asked in a hoarse and tired voice.
"Yes, my love, it's me." Janine gently replied as she brushed a purplish-brown lock from his forehead. Egon slowly opened his good left eye and despite his vision being bad, he could make out Janine's shape beside him.
"You're a...sight...for sore eyes..." Egon said with a slight smile.
"You too." Janine replied, "How do you feel?"
"Tired...and very sore..." Egon tiredly replied, "And my throat hurts..."
"That's probably from the ventilator, it'll go away."
"That explains it..." Egon sighed and closed his eye. "They...beat us Janine. They beat us...and tortured us...They were going...to kill us..." Tears welled up in his eyes, "I...thought I was...gonna die for real...I thought...I'd never see you again..."
Tears fell down the physicist's face and he softly cried. Janine gently wrapped her arms around the injured and emotionally distraught Ghostbuster.
"Shh..it's ok." Janine gently said as she tried to comfort her boyfriend, "You're safe and sound and those heartless bastards are in jail."
Egon managed to calm himself before suddenly remembering his injured friends. "Are the guys...ok? Are they...alive...?"
"They're fine." Janine reassured, "They're all conscious and ok."
"That's good..." Egon replied, relived knowing his friends were ok, "I'm sorry...I lost it..."
"Don't apologize. You went through something traumatic, and crying is normal." Janine said.
"I love you so much." Egon said.
"I love you too, my sweet Egon." Janine briefly removed his oxygen mask and gently kissed his lips. A tear of happiness fell down her face as relief and love took over.
To be continued...
A/N: Sorry this took awhile, I was busy with college, writer's block and other stuff. I'm going to try and finish this story ASAP, but since I failed two classes and going to have to double down on studying, it might be a bit. Thank y'all so, so much for reading and I love y'all. Peace out!